Multi-touch input devices for computing devices, such as personal computers, and computing devices incorporating such input devices, such as tablet computers and smart phones, are popular as they allow more versatile inputs to the computing device than conventional graphic tablets, mouse devices, trackpads and trackballs with relatively simple and comparatively constraining movements. Typically, the touch and/or multitouch input device detects positions at which a user touches an input surface. These positions are conveyed to the computing device, which in turns accepts and performs a user input function and/or displays a cursor or any other suitable graphic element on a display, with the position of the cursors corresponding to the positions at which the user touches the surface. In multi-touch devices, many other actions are also associated with different contact patterns with the input surface.
One of the problems that occurs when using these devices is that the user often looks at a display, such as a computer monitor, that is distanced from and oriented differently than the input device. Therefore, the user can lose track of the location of fingers used to operate the input device when the fingers are lifted from the input device, either voluntarily to be relocated at a different location, or involuntarily by accident.
Also a types of devices that are becoming popular are the tablet computer and the smart phone. A tablet computer or a smart phone is a typically relatively thin rectangular shaped device in which the display occupies most of one side thereof. The display is touch sensitive and therefore provides means for controlling a graphical user interface. For casual text entry, a virtual keyboard can be displayed on the display to allow typing. However, when a user wishes to enter large amounts of text, the use of the virtual keyboard can become tiring. Also, to facilitate typing, the display is typically disposed horizontally on a surface. This forces the user to bend his head to see the display, which can cause strain in the neck of the user.
A solution to these problems is to connect a physical keyboard and an external display to the tablet computer or the smart phone so that the setup for data entry and visualization can be similar to the more ergonomic setup of a conventional computer workstation. The connection can be made by plugging directly or by wireless means the keyboard and display to the tablet or the smart phone or through the use of a docking station. However, the user then loses sight of the tablet or smart phone display, which can make operation of the graphical user interface more difficult. An external pointing device, such as a mouse can be used, but the user then loses the many advantages of the touch screen input versatility, such as the correspondence between a location of fingers adjacent the screen and the position at which an action is taken on the screen in the graphical user interface. Another advantage of the tablet computer or the smart phone that is lost with the use of a mouse or a similar device is the multi-touch capability.
Against this background, there exists a need in the industry to provide an improved input device, system and method for using a graphical user interface.
An object of the present invention is therefore to provide an improved input device, system and method.